Cards release schedule for final year at Busch

ST. LOUIS -- Having lost the World Series to Boston, the defending NL champion St. Louis Cardinals will have a rematch with the Red Sox next summer in what will be the 40th and final season at the current Busch Stadium, the Cardinals said Tuesday in announcing their 2005 schedule.

The Red Sox, who last month swept the Cardinals for the world championship, will make their first regular-season appearance at Busch from June 6-8, with St. Louis hosting the New York Yankees in another interleague matchup June 10-12. That will be the Yankees' first visit to St. Louis since the 1964 World Series, won by the Cardinals.

St. Louis opens its season April 5 with a two-game series at NL Central rival Houston, then plays its home opener three days later against Philadelphia. That three-game series will be followed by two games against the visiting Cincinnati Reds.

The Cardinals last home game at what now is Busch Stadium will be Oct. 2 against the Reds, ending a five-game homestand.

The Cardinals plan to move into the new Busch Stadium, now being built adjacent to the current ballpark, in time for the 2006 season.

St. Louis plays 16 games each -- eight at Busch, eight away -- against its Central Division opponents, with 24 of the Cardinals' last 28 games of the season against division teams.

"With the Cardinals playing their final season at Busch Stadium, 2005 will be a memorable and historic year in its own right," said Dan Farrell, the team's senior vice president of sales and marketing. "We've been presented with one of the most attractive home schedules in the team's history."

The Cardinals will host the NL Central rival Chicago Cubs in eight games, starting with a two-game set April 20-21. The Cubs also will play at Busch July 22-24 and for three games beginning on Labor Day, Sept. 5.

Houston will make a pair of weekend visits to Busch Stadium, April 22-24 and July 15-17.

St. Louis will play at cross-state rival Kansas City in a three-game interleague series starting May 20.

The Cardinals will announce specifics about home tickets later this month.